Football runs in unlikely cycles. At St James' Park this season it has been Mike Ashley who has taken a back seat while Alan Pardew could be making a late bid for the England job. The Newcastle United manager will know that with his side unbeaten in 11 games and third in the table, he has secured a base to breathe easier as the season develops, and there should be no fears of relegation. Big challenges await after the international break but this team will continue to rely upon honest spirit and sweat, and they have bucket loads of both.

The departures of José Enrique, Joey Barton, Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll have proved fortuitous on Tyneside, leaving behind a tight-knit squad where team togetherness is on a high. Theirs is a straightforward game plan: they deliver the ball into the penalty box early. On Saturday they lost their main playmaker, Yohan Cabaye, to a groin problem and were without arguably their best player in Cheik Tioté, but they still withstood Everton to maintain momentum.

They play, and work, to their strengths. When they had the ball they moved it quicker than their opponents, directing it into the box early to use the physical Leon Best and the tall Demba Ba to compete aerially against Johnny Heitinga, Sylvain Distin and Phil Jagielka. In wide areas, Sylvain Marveaux and Jonás Gutiérrez received support from the full-backs, Danny Simpson and Ryan Taylor. If the flank players could not drive past their immediate opponent, they always had the option of playing square or backwards.

Yet, while it is expected these days for full-backs to support their wingers, the reverse is true for Newcastle when they are starved of possession. Their wide players support the defenders, with Gutiérrez, who has experienced life at full-back, working like a Trojan to cover Taylor on the left (see diagram). The Argentinian's contribution gave Taylor the opportunity to get extra tight on his immediate opponent, usually Seamus Coleman, with Gutiérrez dropping into the space vacated by his team-mate. As a result, Coleman was never able to get into his stride or race beyond his marker.

Jonás Gutiérrez’s prodigious covering epitomises this side, enabling Ryan Taylor to get extra tight to stop Coleman using his speed. Newcastle run and work as a team Photograph: Graphic

Guitérrez is a prodigious worker. He just runs and runs, epitomising the drive and determination of the Tynesiders, who cover each other brilliantly when they lose possession. It is their single-minded pursuit of regaining the ball that has contributed to this impressive run but with the squad stretched to the limit, Pardew will look back on this win as a big result.